Drivers at First Bradford are due to walk out for 48-hours next week in a row over service cuts.The dispute centres on the transfer to the Halifax depot of part of the 576 bus service from Bradford to Halifax, with the claimed loss of eight jobs. The 380 bus drivers at the First Bradford depot, members of Unite, plan to strike all day on Monday and Tuesday. The drivers voted by 89 per cent for strike action and by 93 per cent for industrial action short of a strike.Running downUnite had accused the company of running the bus depot down with the intention of closing it in the future. The union also claimed there was “bullying and harassment on a daily basis”.Unite regional officer Harriet Eisner said: “This blinkered management has let services wither on the vine over the last four years – for example, the number of drivers employed has shrunk from 470 to 380 in that time... There is a big shortage of drivers with no recruitment of new drivers and this is coupled with the movement of jobs without consultation from Bradford to other towns.”http://www.halifaxcourier.co.uk

Talks at ACAS between the union and the operator are due to begin tomorrow.

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